A. Field of the Invention
The present invention involves a mechanism used to launch a boat from a boat trailer. More particularly, the present invention discloses a launching mechanism which utilizes a cable system operatively connected to a typical power or hand operated winch. When the winch is activated, cables connected to the bow and the port and stern sides of the boat are drawn toward the rear of the trailer thereby pulling the boat towards the rear for launching.
Boating is a popular sport on the nation's rivers, lakes and offshore areas, and many Americans own small pleasure craft for fishing, water skiing, sightseeing, etc. Most small pleasure craft owners transport their boats by means of relatively small and light trailers, which are pulled by automobiles, pickup trucks or campers. Typical pleasure boats include small rowboats, sailboats, inboard and outboard speedboats and small cabin cruisers. Because the larger pleasure craft may use outboard or inboard engines of substantial weight and horsepower, these pleasure craft may weigh upwards of 1 ton.
A recurring problem arises when a pleasure craft owner seeks to launch a relatively heavy boat from the trailer into a body of water. Typically, the trailer is backed down a ramp into the water unitl the wheels of the trailer are either substantially or completely submerged. However, for the boat to actually float free from the trailer, the trailer must be backed down even further into the water. Most boat owners are hesitant to back the trailer further down into the water because the potential loss of the pulling vehicle due to faulty brakes, etc. is ever present. Once the boat has drawn water, at least at the stern portion thereof, a boat owner unwinds a winch mechanism and the boat will tend to roll off the trailer into the water.
However it is often the case that the boat will not easily roll off the trailer into the water. If the boat is large and heavy a correspondingly large trailer is used which may not be safely backed down into the water a great distance. In this situation, a boat owner must physically push and shove the boat off the back end of the trailer into the water. If a boat owner is an older individual or not very robust, this pushing and shoving of the boat can become extremely exhausting and sometimes it may prove to be impossible to unload the boat.
In view of the foregoing problems, the present invention seeks to eliminate manual pushing and shoving required to launch a boat from a trailer. Rather, the present invention employs a power winch which operatively displaces a cable system which is secured to the bow of the boat. Upon actuation of the powered winch, the boat will be launched from the trailer into the water. An additional feature of the present invention resides in the use of a wind arm for guiding a boat into a boat trailer. Most boat owners are quite familiar with the problem of leading a boat onto a trailer from the water when it is windy. The wind has a tendency to keep the boat out of alignment with the trailer so that the boat may be properly docked or loaded onto the trailer.
B. Description of the Prior Art
It is well known to launch a boat from a trailer by means of a cable reel or winch. A typical cable reel will be fully wound with a cable which is attached to an eyelet or ring on the bow of the boat. With the boat trailer disposed at an angle to the water, the cable reel may be unwound slowly to lower the boat into the water. The supporting rollers on the trailer must be in good repair or else the boat may not readily roll off the trailer into the water.
One such prior art device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,815. This patent describes a boat centering apparatus in which a cable reel is connected in a conventional manner to an eyelet at the forward end of the boat. However, this patent is generally directed to the object of providing a boat centering apparatus which can be readily mounted on any type of boat trailer for maintaining contact with the sides of the boat during a loading operation to ensure that the boat will be properly centered on the trailer during the loading operation. U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,815 does not describe a mechanism which operatively launches a boat from a trailer, but rather describes the use of a pair of connecting rod members which are arranged on the trailer so as to engage a boat on opposite sides thereof in order to resiliently urge the boat to a centered position with respect to the trailer before loading the boat onto the trailer.
An amphibious boat trailer is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,530,518. Here, the amphibious trailer is used for launching, docking or transporting a pleasure boat wherein flotation cells are secured to the trailer. The flotation cells float the trailer at a depth sufficient to enable the boat hull to just clear the bed of the trailer and float over the trailer frame without manual maneuvering or lifting from outside the boat. While this patent may at first appear to provide a satisfactory method for launching a boat, it becomes readily apparent that the trailer must be substantially submerged within the water. By substantially submerging or backing a trailer down a steep ramp into the water, there still remains the substantial risk that an automobile which pulls the trailer could inadvertantly become submerged also. U.S. Pat. No. 3,530,518 does not disclose a winch system operatively secured to cables for pulling a boat toward the rear of a trailer during the launching operation.
A further floating boat trailer device is set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,124,259. This patent describes a floating boat trailer for launching boats which also serves as a floating boat duck. Specifically, this patent describes the provision of a floating boat trailer which floats in the water adjacent to the shoreline of a waterway whereby the trailer may readily be swung about at various angles to receive a boat adjacent the shoreline, thereby greatly facilitating the alignment of the trailer with the boat as it approaches the shoreline, particularly when loading a boat in the trailer during windy weather conditions. U.S. Pat. No. 3,124,259 also does not employ a powered system for launching a boat from a trailer. While U.S. Pat. No. 3,124,259 contemplates the use of a conventional winch disposed to operate a cable over a cable pulley, there is no disclosure of a winch being used to pull or launch a boat off a trailer and into the water.